October 6 – Anniversary of a Human-Powered (mostly feet!) Feat

On
this date in 2007, adventurer Jason Lewis finished an expedition that
took a looooooong time.

It
took him 13 years, but he circled the entire world entirely through
human powered means. He is the first to have done so...and he might
be the only to ever do so!

Along the way to this accomplishment, Lewis also became one of two first people to cross the Atlantic Ocean by pedal power, the first person to cross North America on inline skates, and
the first person to cross the Pacific Ocean by pedal power.

Here
is how it went:

On
July 12, 1994, Jason Lewis and his friend Stevie Smith left London on
what they called Expedition 360. I see no record of how they crossed
the English Channel – likely they pedaled a boat? – but they
mountain-biked 1,700 miles through France, Spain, and Portugal. They
crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Lagos, Portugal, ot Miami, Florida,
pedaling a wooden pedal-powered boat for 111 consecutive days to
cross 4,500 miles of ocean!

When
they landed, on October 14, 1994, Smith seems to disappear from the
account of crossing North America. But Lewis kept on.

Lewis
roller bladed thousands of miles across the U.S. His accomplishment
was very nearly wiped out by a drunk driver in Pueblo, Colorado, and
he spent nine months recovering from two broken legs. But Lewis kept
on. And he finished his North America journey in 1996.

Then
there is a two year break. The route map (shown below) shows a jaunt
down to Mexico, and I know that Lewis took odd jobs to fund his
adventure. I read that he did cattle driving in Colorado and worked
in a funeral parlor in Australia...but that was before and after this
California sojourn.

Smith
rejoins the story in San Francisco, California, in 1998. Smith and
Lewis reunited with their old pedal-powered boat and spent 53 days
getting from California to Hilo, Hawaii. Smith took off again, this
time for good.

Lewis
and a group of supporters hiked across the Big Island of Hawaii.
Another 80 miles checked off the list.

For
the first time, Lewis started to pedal across the ocean alone. Traveling
from Hawaii to Tarawa took 72 days of solo pedaling. I am assuming
there was a bit more of a break at that point; in 2000, the
pedal-boat's builder, Chris Tipper, joined Lewis to help pedal a
1,300-mile stretch from Tarawa to the Solomon Islands. At that point
another supporter stepped in to help with then next 1,450 miles,
crossing the Coral Sea from the Solomon Islands to Australia. That
took about a month; Lewis arrived in Australia during what I always
think of as summer (June or July of 2000), but what is winter “down
under.”

Another
pause to regroup and perhaps earn money. In 2001, Lewis crossed
Australia by bike. He traveled 3,500 miles in 88 days, traveling with
a group of supporters.

Another
pause. Fundraising! Finally Expedition 360 was relaunched with ye olde
pedal-powered boat in 2005. This time Lewis pedaled with Lourdes
Arango, traveling 450 miles from Darwin, Australia, to Dili, East
Timor. At some point near Australia, they were attacked by a
crocodile, but of course they survived! Once in East Timor, Lewis
switched to a kayak and traveled thousands of miles from island to
island, traveling through the Indonesian archipelago and to
Singapore.

In
2006 Lewis biked from Singapore to the Himalaya Mountains, and then
he hiked and biked through the Himalayas to Mumbai, India. It took
him 46 days of pedaling with another friend to travel 2,000 miles
from Mumbai to Djibouti.

The
next part of the planned route would have taken Lewis through
Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt, and the Middle East, back into Europe.
Actually, this part didn't go too smoothly. Authorities wouldn't let
him kayak here or mountain-bike there. He was arrested on suspicion
of spying. He completed this section by illegally traveling, partly
at night. By the way, during his time in Sudan, Lewis came across actors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, who were doing the Long
Way Down motorbike trip.

In
July 2007, Lewis reached Syria; he bicycled across Turkey, Bulgaria,
Romania, Austria, Germany, and Belgium. And then finally back to the
United Kingdom and London.

Goal
achieved! Lewis had traveled 360 degrees, more than 46 thousand miles, and survived multiple adversities -- attacks and accidents and an arrest -- and
several illnesses.

Jason
Lewis has written several books and has visited more than 900 schools
in 37 countries, giving talks to students about world citizenship and
zero carbon emission travel. He also works to get students involved
in programs connected to global sustainability.

By
the way, it's interesting to note that before Expedition 360, Lewis
had never crossed an ocean before and had never roller bladed,
kayaked, or rode a bike for more than a few miles!

About Me

This site is designed to be a source of interesting articles for kids and a resource for teachers and parents (especially homeschool teacher/parents!). From world holidays to historical anniversaries, Every Day Is Special celebrates each and every day.